Marshal of the German Democratic Republic (german: Marschall der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik), was the highest rank in the

National People's Army The National People's Army (german: Nationale Volksarmee, ; NVA ) were the armed forces of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) from 1956 to 1990. The NVA was organized into four branches: the (Ground Forces), the (Navy), the (Air Force) an ...

of the former

German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

(GDR). It was never held and was abolished in 1989.

History

The rank of was established on 25 March 1982 by decree of the (

State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of South Korea, headed by the President * State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative auth ...

of the GDR), but never bestowed. The could promote a general to this rank for exceptional military achievement. The rank was an imitation of the supreme Soviet rank, that of

Marshal of the Soviet Union Marshal of the Soviet Union (russian: Маршал Советского Союза, Marshal sovetskogo soyuza, ) was the highest military rank of the Soviet Union. The rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union was created in 1935 and abolished in 19 ...

. Some believe that this rank would only have been granted in wartime and was created as a result of changes in

Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republic ...

military planning. During wartime, a was to command an operational

Army group An army group is a military organization consisting of several field armies, which is self-sufficient for indefinite periods. It is usually responsible for a particular geographic area. An army group is the largest field organization handled by ...

that included all East German forces including

Police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

and

Stasi The Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the (),An abbreviation of . was the Intelligence agency, state security service of the East Germany from 1950 to 1990. The Stasi's function was similar to the KGB, serving as a means of maint ...

troops. Prior to this change all East German forces were under the direct control of the Soviet military command. In November 1989, the acting Minister for National Defense, Admiral Theodor Hoffmann, abolished this rank.

Design

Several designs were considered for the Marshal shoulder board. The final design was a shoulder board 118 mm long and 48 mm wide consisting of interlaced gold and silver cord backed by a red cloth material on which was placed a five-pointed, gilded star with a red ruby in the center. According to Klaus Wather's , 12 pairs of these shoulder boards were made. Drawings were also made of a Soviet-style "Marshal's star" to be worn on a red neck ribbon but this item was never produced. Also planned were Marshal rank insignia for the new field uniform. This consisted of a 90 x 60 mm rectangular badge of stone-grey cloth for mounting on the upper uniform sleeve. On this badge was woven a large five-pointed gold colored star with a red center over a 20 mm long horizontal gold bar. For the cap there was an oval badge 50 × 30 mm with the same design as the sleeve insignia. OF-11 Marschall der DDR.png, Shoulder board GDR Army Arab OF6-9.svg, Collar patches Marschall-hat.jpg, Field uniform cap insignia

References

* Klaus H. Feder: ''Marschall der DDR – ein Dienstgrad, den keiner erreichte.'' Militaria, 5/2002 * Klaus Wather: ''Uniformeffekten der bewaffneten Organe der DDR Band II.'' Ecotour, 1994 {{Highest Military Ranks * Military ranks of Germany Military of East Germany 1982 establishments in East Germany 1989 disestablishments in East Germany

History

Design

See also

References